I realize, dear reader, that I left you in a bit of a lurch after the State Board of Education meeting. It’s been a whirlwind few days since I returned from Vancouver, so let’s a take moment to reflect.

Last week, the State Board unanimously passed a recommendation to strengthen Washington’s graduation requirements with CORE 24 and near-unanimously decided to set the third year of high school math to algebra 2, starting in 2013. Let that sink in. This is the first time since 1985 that Washington has made the choice to raise its graduation requirements and it couldn’t have come a moment too soon.

So what’s next for the State Board? Great question. Conscious that CORE 24 should not serve as an “unfunded mandate” for school districts and teachers, the State Board plans to aggressively target the legislature and Basic Education Funding Task Force to ensure that districts receive ample support during implementation. The State Board will also likely begin a “CORE 24 implementation committee” to study how best phase-in the new standards for the class of 2016. Check out the Seattle P-I’s coverage, for more.

Additionally, as I mentioned in my Almost Live-blog of the meeting, they’ll also be ramping up their planning for a new system of accountability for Washington State. And we’ll be with them every step of the way, so stay tuned.

Photo courtesy of the League of Education Voters--the fabulous Chris Korsmo is on the far left.